Walking or climbing down a mountain is as difficult an enterprise as climbing up one. Kaushal and I talk about it all the time. The pressure on your knees, calf muscles, and hamstring is tremendous, and above all else, the ankle is always at risk.

Right now, the continuous descent is still enjoyable but it seems endless. And am thinking it might take four hours after all, coz I can’t see the end of this long winding trail as yet.

Fitness is an essential ingredient on hikes and treks, but mental balance and rational focus on the goal of the trek is the key.

And I have to constantly keep reminding myself it’s not a race and then I slow down and enjoy the view, and the wind… else, I keep looking at Upamanyu and Kaushal disappearing around yet another bend and that seems to trigger a message from my brain to my legs to pick up the pace… but, due to long habit, eventually I always stop to look.